The sermons of Master Henry Smith gathered into one volume. Printed according to his…The sermons of Maister Henrie Smith gathered into one volume. Printed according to his…

The Apostles before their full groweth, ⟨p. 533⟩might seem to be encumbered with this error, because when they saw Christ walking upon the waters, they said, It is a spirit: and when Peter knocked at the door in the night, they said to Rhode a Damsel, It is his Angel: Act. 12. 15. Which error was drawn from the elusion of Satan, and vulgar opinion received from Pythagoras, which taught that the souls of men departed, did return into the bodies of other men after death, either for correction, or for reward: if they were good souls, then they were preferred to better men: if they had been bad souls, then they were cast into worse bodies then they had before: a fine Philosophical dream.

The Apostles before their full groweth, ⟨p. 533⟩might seeme to bee incumbred with this errour, because when they saw Christ walking vpon the waters, they sayd, It is a spirite: and when Peter knocked at the doore in the night, they sayd to Rhode a Damsell, It is his Angel: Act. 12. 15. Which errour was drawen from the elusion of Sathan, and vulgar opinion receiued from Pythagoras, which taught that the soules of men departed, did returne into the bodies of other men after death, either for correction, or for reward: if they were good soules, then they were preferred to better men: if they had been badde soules, then they were cast into worse bodies then they had before: a fine Philosophicall dreame.

This deluded Herod: when he heard of Christ, he supposed that John Baptist was risen again, whom he had beheaded: and the better sort of the people, as we read in Mat. 16. 14. dreamed that Christ was Elijah, or John Baptist, or Jeremiah, or some of the Prophets risen again. But touching the soul once departed from the body, that it returns not nor can return into the world: many examples and testimonies, and reasons, & the order of our resurrection declareth.